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Accident
Accident is the sixth and final episode of the first season of the sitcom Bottom which first aired on 28th October 1991 Plot The episode starts with Eddie sat round the dining table and much to his dismay Richie in his pyjamas enters the room singing Happy Birthday to himself, he then starts reading his cards from Sue Carpenter, the lads on the Ark Royal, General Pinochet which Eddie claims he sends every year and one card from ABBA with Happy Christmas from 1973 written inside it, another is from the soviet union with ingrateful thanks to comrade Richie which Eddie claims Richie put the R's the wrong way round, all these cards are obviously forged. This eventually leads to an argument and Richie insists that Eddie rights down an apology to him, he does so and Richie forgives him and says he can come to his Birthday Party that night although Eddie informs him he was going out that night with his real friends but Richie says they can come along too. Richie soon asks about his Birthday present which leads to joke presents which turn out to be Richie's comb he lost the previous week and the TV Remote Control but Eddie eventually gives him his real present, a piece of paper with Madam Swish 3:30 written on it, at first he mistakes it and believes it to be a prostitute heaps praise on Eddie, so initially excited is he at the prospect of finally getting sex, it is however soon revealed Madam Swish is actually a race horse running in the 3:30 in Kempton, Richie gives £20 for Eddie to place a bet on it which is later revealed as a 10/1 odd. After putting up his Birthday decorations Eddie returns from the big race and reveals to Richie that they won much to his joy, Eddie successfully fools Richie to thinking he won £2, when he tosses over Richie's winnings Richie falls off of the stepladder and breaks his leg and is unable to get back up and move his leg back into its position, Eddie tries to help, but the leg doesn't budge and Richie starts to panic, Eddie then gets an idea and ties some string round Richie's leg and the door handle and slams it to put it leg back into place. However instead, Richie is dragged across the floor and hits his head on the door in the process and he is taken to hospital. The return from the hospital with Richie's leg in a plaster cast, Richie is expecting to see his guests arrive at 7:00 but none of them turn up, the door bell rings and he answers the door to find Eddie's friends Dave Hedgehog and Spudgun waiting, Eddie shows them into the flat whilst Richie awaits and sadly sings Happy Birthday to himself when they don't turn up but he tries to fool Eddie, Dave and Spudgun to thinking he sent them away so they can stay longer and that he could hang around with them instead. After being introduced to Spudgun and Dave Hedgehog Richie insists they play Sardines a similar game to hide and seek only one person hides and the rest have to find that person hiding and whoever finds them, has to hide with that person. Because of being in a wheelchair, Richie needs the other three to hide him in the upstairs cupboard, and they must do so with their eyes closed. Once they have hidden Richie and counted to ten, Eddie, Spudgun and Dave instead decide to spend the night in front of the television, drinking the liquor Eddie has bought with the winnings he stole from Richie.They sit down to watch War and Peace. After over 5 hours of hiding in the cupboard Richie gets ecstatic believing it to be a world record but immediately gets bored of hiding in the cupboard and attempts to rejoin them downstairs but due to his immobility he ends up falling down the stairs and crashes through the door of the cloakroom and as a result breaks his other leg much to the delight and humor of Eddie, Dave and Spudgun. Spudgun vomits on Richie and also falls on him at the same time and Richie is sent back to hospital. Because his second accident occurred at the same time as the last orders of the local pub Eddie invites everyone round for a party. Eddie is just in the middle of having the crowd in stitches whilst doing impersonations of Richie - with a mop end on his head just as Richie who now with both legs in casts enters the room, although he is oblivious to Eddie's mockery of him. After Eddie convinces him that all of his friends have turned up for his party after all, Richie cheers up and attempts to boss over the activities. After attempting to divest a female guest of her blouse, he is stopped by the woman's boyfriend who then proceeds to get everyone together to give Richie the bumps. As they all throw him into the air, Richie hits the ceiling and his casts shatter, ending the episode with a close-up of him screaming in pain. Cast Ade Edmonson Rik Mayall Steven O'Donnell Christopher Ryan Mark Williams David Lloyd Wayne Michaels Notes This episode marks the first appearance of Dave Hedgehog and Spudgun This is the only episode in which Richie and Eddie win a competition Its marks the first and only time Eddie tricks and plays gags on Richie There are two scenes showing the sirens of an Ambulance going down a street, one of these would later be used in the series 2 episode Digger This is the first episode where Richie crashes through a door, it would happen again in the series 3 episode Carnival Its the only episode to date where a character is seen with plaster casts This is the second episode where Sue Carpenter is mentioned Its the only episode that is set during a character's Birthday Eddie breaks the fourth wall in which after Richie says he is so old fashioned he looks directly at the camera and pulls a confused expression At one point Richie is heard saying Damn, i have got no time to put on my girl bait underpants this is a reference to The Young Ones episode "Summer Holiday" in which Rik Mayall's character Rick also has a pair of girl bait underpants Errors In the stage shows its implied Eddie cannot read or write, however in this episode he had given Richie the piece of paper with Madam Swish 3:30 presumably written by Eddie and Eddie is seen writing down his apology to Richie Although its his Birthday some of the Birthday decorations Richie puts up are Christmas decorations As Richie tries to catch the winnings Eddie tosses over to him he falls off the stepladder and lands on his front, in the next scene he is lying on his back, though it is possible that he rolled over as he landed. Eddie ties rope around Richie's leg and to the door handle in the hopes of slamming the door will pull his leg back into place, as the door slams Richie's trouser leg rips which reveals his broken leg is a fake leg and his real leg is seen behind it As Richie is dragged across the floor you can clearly see a trolley under him which is used to pull him along, you can also hear the sound of the wheels squeaking When Spudgun leans on the wall whilst helping Richie up the stairs to play Sardines the stage shakes. Eddie, Spudgun and Dave Hedgehog watch Emmerdale Farm Compilation on video but a video player/machine is not installed until the series 3 episode Carnival. When Richie crashes through the cloakroom door he lands on his front, he is then in the nest shot of hjim on the floor now lying on his back. Though like the first time, it is possible that he rolled over.